What do Ben Clark, Matthew Crosby, Brendan Dodds and Tom Parry all have in common? Each one makes up a quarter of the hot new UK comedy outfit Pappy’s Fun Club. Annette Slattery asks them a few questions in the lead up to their debut appearance in the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.
How did Pappy’s Fun Club first come together?
Ben and Tom knew each other from Sunday school, where they’d perform religious themed comedy sketches. Tom left to go to University and met up with Matthew and Brendan who were already doing sketches together and arguing about religion. When they left university it seemed only logical that we should form a sketch team devoted to an omniscient being.
I first read the name Pappy’s Fun Club in 2006 in a blog entry by Richard Herring, which he wrote when he first saw you guys at Free Fringe in Edinburgh and was deeply impressed. Even though you’ve been at this comedy caper since 2004 you’re still relative newcomers. How important is the support of experienced peers like Richard?
Alongside making audiences laugh; approval from people who we think are brilliant is the greatest form of flattery. Last year we had some of our favourite comedians come and see the show and, in the most part, say lovely things about us. There is a misapprehension that comedians can be a very jealous and bitter breed, but we’ve not experienced that. Older comics like Richard seem really supportive of newbies like us. Although there’s always the suspicion that he’s just trying to lull us into a false sense of security so that, when we least expect it, he can suck the youth and vitality out of us like a bloodless vampire.
I’m asking you to be unapologetic comedy-nerd-fans now. Who do you admire in the world of comedy?
Daniel Kitson, Wil Hodgson, Josie Long, Jon Richardson, DoD, Andy Zaltzman, Harry Hill, Richard Herring, Jo Neary, Matt Rudge, Tommy Cooper, Peter Cook, PBH, We Are Klang, David Cross, Patton Oswalt… the list goes on.
2007 was a big year for Pappy’s Fun Club, with rave reviews and nominations for Best Newcomer from both the Chortle and if.comedy awards. What do these things mean to you in pragmatic terms and also personally?
It was nice to know that critics enjoyed the show, although we had some really nice comments from audience members already. There’s nothing more flattering than seeing someone having come to see the show for a second time, bringing friends. It’s also great to be considered alongside great acts like Maxwell and Andrew Lawrence. Reviews and nominations actually have quite different effects. A review will hopefully help encourage people who might enjoy your show to come along, whereas sometimes people go and see nominated shows that they might not normally have taken a chance on. So awards can diversify your audience for better or worse. But either way, it’s always an exciting thing to perform to a full room, even if a large proportion of them suddenly have notebooks.
Is comedy Art?
No, it’s comedy.
I imagine you’ve been asked many times but I’m still keen to know, where does the name “Pappy’s Fun Club” come from?
It came to Brendan in a dream.
Australian audiences are almost entirely unfamiliar with your work. What can punters expect from your Melbourne debut?
Super specific references to London and the surrounding area: unless you have a very good working knowledge of our parliamentary system you’re better off going and seeing something else. Not really. Expect the battle between good and evil, historical characters, and four friends in home-made costumes who can’t believe they’ve been allowed on stage for an hour in Melbourne. It’s going to be great.
For booking details for “Pappy’s Fun Club” check out the Comedy Festival website